Free advice: Coconut and its magic oil

Military power, launching of satellites or progress in IT are not the only parameters for assessing the growth of a nation. The number of people with healthy bodies, stable mind and a hygienic environment are the main indices of sustainable growth. It is estimated the world population will increase by more than 35 per cent by 2050. But today, our living systems are totally disturbed with microbes causing viral infections, vitamin loss, mineral deficiency, hyperglycaemia, cardiovascular disease and cancer.

Thankfully, nature is a treasure house of ingredients that help the human body fight illnesses and toxins. The selection of foods with therapeutic property has become a trend of research today apart from the production of synthetic drugs. Coconut oil is one such super therapy.

Statistically, India alone has an area of 2 million hectares under coconut cultivation, out of the 12 million hectares identified globally in over 90 countries. Unlike other vegetable oils, the chemical composition of coconut oil is unique and hence its functional properties at nutritional, therapeutic and industrial level vary.

Coconut oil (or CO, in this case) has the highest level of saturated fats (92 per cent) with a negligible level of unsaturation. The lipid profile of medium chain fatty acids (MCFA) with profound increase of lauric acid (C12) always provides an innate ‘healthy status’ for coconut oil.

Current data on the medicinal properties of coconut oil has fractionated a good number of oleochemcials in CO with antiviral, anti-cardiac, anti-inflammatory, anti-fungal, neuroregenerative, anti-diabetic and anti- HIV and skin-care properties.

The history of the role of saturated fats in increasing the level of cholesterol in human blood was a classical concept in 1950s put forward by

Dr. Ancel Key, known by the epic nickname, Mr. Cholesterol, based on the analysis of blood samples from people of seven countries of Europe and America. But Dr Key included Japan also in the study and formulated an equation named Key’s equation.

The interesting aspect is that the human volunteers selected by Dr.Key for the analysis were mainly the consumers of animal fats. Though the equation of Key was partially accepted by modern researchers, reports show that the composition of saturated fats of coconut oil does not elevate the LDL cholesterol that favours cardio vascular diseases.

Moreover, the MCFA of CO activates the synthesis of HDL cholesterol — the good cholesterol essential for the body. Based on the chemistry of CO, the efficacy of its digestion was more easy and comfortable in the body than unsaturated fats. For industrial purpose, the processing protocol of coconuts was standardised for the production of 2 types of oil. The first is commercially popular and the second is the wet or semi-dry method of extracting virgin coconut oil (VCO). VCO is the presence of phytochemicals and vitamins in the oil that provide more nutritional strength even for raw consumption. The neuroregenerative property of VCO has come up with an amazing discovery as a cure for Alzheimer’s after Oxford University developed ketone bodies as the substitute of glucose for activating neurons and brain cells.

The merit of coconut oil at nutrition and therapeutic level has provided a distinct status to coconut as a tropical oil crop.

Coconut oil is also turning into a biofuel. Scientists of the SCMS institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology research and Development, Cochin, have developed a coconut biofuel using the trans-esterification process. The data was published internationally and filed for a US patent. The functional property of coconut biofuel was tested in a diesel vehicle which had no modifications to the engine and fuel lines.

Thus the diversified potential of CO as an energy source has developed tremendous scope for increasing its market demand. But the government will have to provide necessary funding for doing meaningful research for promoting this wonderful fat.